From the Editor's desk...
As reported by Reuters: WARWICK, R.I. - Two owners of The Station nightclub were charged with involuntary manslaughter on Tuesday in the first criminal counts stemming from a fire that killed 100 people at a performance by the band Great White. A Rhode Island grand jury indictment handed up on Tuesday charged owners Jeffrey and Michael Derderian with involuntary manslaughter. Dan Biechele, the former road manager of Great White, was also charged with involuntary manslaughter. The Station went up in flames on Feb. 20 during a pyrotechnic display at the start of a concert by Great White. The blaze was the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history.
This weekend you can catch Hatebreed, Agnostic Front, Found Dead Hanging, The Unseen and Ringworm at the following gigs:
12/11/03 Scranton, PA @ Tink's
12/12/03 Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Chance
12/13/03 Albany, NY @ Saratoga Winners (w/Sick Of It All, Most Precious Blood)
12/14/03 New Haven, CT Toad's Place

Vocalist Sammy Hagar and bassist Michael Anthony will make an appearance at Houston’s downtown pre-Super Bowl party, called “SuperBash,” which is held from January 28th, - February 1st, 2004.
An update from vocalist Sebastian Bach via his website: “Hey, East Coast -- what up? Was that a storm or what! Spent the last 4 days or so near Boston, MA finishing up the long awaited first ever Sebastian Bach DVD FOREVER WILD which is exceeding my wildest expectations in every way! Wait ‘til you freaks get your hands on this -- it rips! We have assembled as much footage as possible into the DVD & the end result is something which I am EXTREMELY proud of & cannot wait for you all to see! The concert from the Whiskey in '98 has been remixed & sounds totally heavy! The FOREVER WILD TV footage is hilarious & excellent quality, there is both footage from the TV show itself as well as UNRELEASED behind-the-scenes bloopers / screw-ups etc. that had us all in the control booth laughing our collective asses off while we were watching it this week. The FOREVER WILD DVD will be in US record stores MAY 4 2004!” In other Sebastian Bach news, he recently wrapped up shooting a second episode of Gilmore Girls, which is scheduled to air on the WB in January. He is slated to continue and shoot a third episode…
According to MTV, religious rockers P.O.D. are having trouble getting Christian bookstores to carry their latest album, Payable on Death, due to controversy over the album cover. So far, approximately 85% of their outlets have rejected carrying the album.
Lamb of God are preparing their DVD, Terror and Hubris, for release on January 13th, 2004. Around that time, they are also slated to lens a video for the tracfk, “As the Palaces Burn.” Check out Lamb-of-God.com for more info on the DVD.
From Ephemera Press: On November 30th, New York City dignitaries and aging rockers gathered at the East Village corner of Bowery and Second Street to pay homage to Joey Ramone, the lead singer of the pioneer Punk group The Ramones, and to officially dedicate "Joey Ramone Place." A few steps away at CBGBs, the bar where punk was born in the 1970s, Joey's high-octane remake of the Louis Armstrong classic "What a Wonderful World" (recorded right before Joey's death in 2001) never sounded better!
Y&T's UnEarthed CD is now available. It contains 74 minutes of music, including previously unreleased Y&T recordings and demos from 1974 through 2003. It can be ordered at
http://www.meniketti.com/menmerch.html.
Cryptopsy announce the return of their original vocalist, Lord Worm, who states: "Un mal pour un bien, I've heard it said, and those seven long years ago, unhappy though I was at leaving (for a private question of honor, not beer), it was none the less for the best. Now, we've come full circle and again a private question of honor finds me back in the fold. It is so and it cannot be otherwise. See you soon." Cryptopsy are currently writing new material, and expect to begin recording their fifth album in March.

11/28/03

From the Editor's desk...
Alice Cooper will be receiving his star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame on Tuesday, December 2nd at 11:30am. The exact location is at: 7000 Hollywood Blvd. (at the corner of Orange and Hollywood Blvd. by the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and across the street from the AMC Galaxy movie theater). The ceremony, presented by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, is open to the public, and all are welcome to join.
Fred Durst’s face required stitches after being cracked in the head with an unidentified object. The Limp Bizkit vocalist was performing from the audience at New York Hammerstein Ballroom while on tour with Korn when someone chucked an item at him. Durst was treated and released.
Zakk Wylde will be doing a meet & greet, where he will be sigining autographs until 4pm:
12/13/03 Huntington Beach, CA @ The Gear Trader (2 pm)
Earache Records is throwing a free Christmas Party in the UK. Deicide and Akercocke will be performing at the show! The details are as follows:
12/22/03 Nottingham, UK Rescue Rooms (8 pm)
Buckethead of Guns N’ Roses has been working with The Lord of the Rings actor Viggo Mortensen on the latter’s forthcoming album, Pandemoniumfromamerica, which is said to be an instrumental/experimental type project. The album is scheduled to release on December 5th.
Following up on Meatloaf, who recently collapsed onstage while performing in the UK: The rock vocalist was actually hospitalized for a condition called Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which causes an irregular heartbeat. He underwent an angiogram (heart surgery), and is recovering in a private location in London.
Guitarist “Metal” Mike Chlasciak (PainmuseuM, Halford) will guest perform on the debut Beyond The Gates album from Hammerfall's Joacim Cans. The CD will also feature Mat Sinner (Primal Fear), Mark Zonder (Fates Warning), Stefan Elmgren (Hammerfall). Check out www.joacimcans.com. Metal Mike also guests on the new CIII release, Terra Incognita on the track "Spirit Of Kindness.” For more info on that, check out www.consortiumproject.com.
Linkin Park and P.O.D. will begin their tour in January. Click here for more details.
Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro and Carmen Electra tied the knot in Las Vegas last weekend. Sharon Osbourne is said to have been a bride's maid.
Supagroup hits the West Coast with Speedealer in December. Here are the dates:

From the Editor's desk...
Aerosmith's forthcoming blues album, at this time tentatively titled Honking on Bobo, will see a release in March of 2004, as opposed to the originally slated January date.
In a recent interview with Guitar One magazine, brothers Dean and Robert DeLeo confirm that Stone Temple Pilots has officially broken up.
The Black Sabbath box set, Black Box, will be released in stores on March 2nd, 2004. It will include all Ozzy-era albums, as well as a DVD of never-before-seen footage.
In Flames will be releasing their latest effort, titled Soundtrack To Your Escape, on March 29th overseas through Nuclear Blast. A North American release date has yet to be determined.
Vocalist Meatloaf was recently treated in London for exhaustion due to a prolonged viral infection, after collapsing onstage at a concert. The condition is not life-threatening.
The Killswitch Engage boys have been keeping busy. In addition to their current run on the ‘Headbanger’s Ball’ Tour, vocalist Howard Jones will make an appearance on Demon Hunter’s sophomore album, titled Summer of Darkness, and guitarist Adam Dutkiewitz is producing All That Remains’ next album, This Darkened Heart.
A Perfect Circle has announced a few UK gigs in the New Year:
02/02/04 Birmingham, UK Academy
02/03/04 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo
02/07/04 Manchester, UK Apollo
02/08/04 Nottingham, UK Rock City
02/09/04 Southampton, UK Guildhall
At The Gates’ Tomas Lindberg and his project The Great Deceiver will release A Venom Well Designed sometime in February of 2004.
Impaled Nazarene, with new guitarist Tuomio, will release their eighth album, titled All That You Fear, in January.
Monster Magnet are currently working on their next effort, at this time titled Monolithic Babies. The album with feature newest addition, bassist Jim Baglino. It will feature drummer Michael Wildwood, although he has recently departed with the band. A replacement has not been announced as of yet.
Society 1 drummer Dragon was forced to bail on their current tour with Twizted for personal reasons. Filling in for Dragon will be Powerman 5000’s Adrian Ost. Society 1 plan to release a DVD, begin writing for a new album, and lens a video for the single “Hate” in the New Year.
Just in time for Doro’s 20th anniversary in the music biz, her double-disc DVD, Für Immer, will be released on December 1st through SPV. The DVD contains the live-concert Balve Höhlenrock (2003), a Balve-documentation, sound selection, history, video clips, fan material and much more.
Brides of Destruction -- which features in its ranks bassist Nikki Sixx and guitarists Tracii Guns and John Corabi -- will release their debut album, titled Here Comes The Brides, in Japan on December 25th, 2003. A date has yet to be determined for the rest of the world at this time.

11/17/03

News from the Editor's Desk...
Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society has been nominated as "Best Live Video" for this years Surround Music Awards 2003. After an astounding first week, charting at #3, Zakk Wylde’s DVD Broozed, Boozed, and Broken Boned is touted as one of the best live-concert DVD's of the year. The prestigious event takes place on December 11th and 12th (with the awards on the evening of the 11th) and features a veritable who’s-who of music industry personalities, experts and veterans. This years award show is to be held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California and is part of the 2003 International Surround Conference and Showcase sponsored by Surround Professional magazine, revealed by High Fidelity Review.
Motorhead vocalist Lemmy plans on recording and releasing a solo album sometime in 2004/2005. So far he’s recorded a few tracks with The Reverend Horton Heat and The Damned. More info as it becomes available.
Original Riot vocalist (1977-1981) Guy Speranza has passed away
from pancreatic cancer at the age of 47. For more info, please visit RiotsWeb.com. In other Riot news, drummer Frank Gilchriest will be joining the band on their next album. Expect a tour in 2004.
Henry Rollins will be releasing a DVD of his spoken word performances, titled Live at Luna Park. The disc is due out on February 10th, 2004, and will feature a bonus of “Rollins Vs. Iggy Pop.”
Cannibal Corpse will release their next effort, The Wretched Spawn, in February, 2004.
Anthrax has the following gigs lined up:
11/29/03 Leominster, MA Liquid
12/01/03 Toledo, OH Headliners
12/02/03 Indianapolis, IN The Vogue
12/03/03 Fort Wayne, IN Piere's
12/05/03 Chicago, IL House Of Blues
12/05/03 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar
12/06/03 Flint, MI Machine Shop
12/07/03 Cleveland, OH Odeon Concert Club
12/09/03 Louisville, KY Coyote's
12/10/03 Knoxville, TN Blue Cats
12/12/03 Memphis, TN New Daisy Theatre
12/13/03 Valparaiso, IN McCools
12/14/03 Clear Lake, IA Surf Ballroom

The newest addition to the Abacus Recordings roster, Burnthe8Track, have recently finished up recording their debut album. Here's a report from singer Derek Kun:
"We recorded from Oct. 1 to Oct. 31 at Westside Records in Burlington, Ontario, Canada (just outside Toronto). Our producer/engineer Justin Koop (Silverstein, Grade) is currently in the late stages of mixing and mastering. We recorded 12 songs and are extremely happy with the record so far and as a result we are still not sure which of the songs will be released as our first single. Our time in the studio was fantastic and insane at the same time. We worked (if you can call it work) 12-16 hours every day with only one day off. We have also been busy working on the album artwork and trying to determine a title for the new record."
Rudy Sarzo (ex-Quiet Riot) seems likely to rejoin Angel, 23 years later!
InsideOutMusic will be releasing the first four Symphony X titles: Symphony X, The Divine Wings of Tragedy, Damnation Game and Twilight in Olympus as Special Editions. They will be re-released in digi-pack form with extended booklets, screensavers and video interviews.
Sevendust will be featured in the lastest issue of Hustler Rocks.
The Hellacopters will release their second volume of Cream of the Crap! in January 2004.
The following statement is the official position on the resignation of the (5) former members of Circle II Circle:
“As we approached the upcoming tour with Saxon and Doro, there were many financial and logistical issues that needed to be discussed and finalized. We (5) attempted to have a business meeting with [vocalist] Zak Stevens and management. Our request was denied. After learning that the entire band was to be replaced after the tour was completed, it became apparent to all of us that management had decided that our concerns were of no concern to them. There were many issues which plagued the planning of the tour. The band was simply tired of the general lack of respect that we were receiving from ‘C2C Inc.’ It was a very tough decision for all of us. We have given 1000% to the success of this band and could no longer accept management’s business practices.We would like to thank the fans for their incredible support. We always looked forward to meeting new faces at each show. That is one of the things that we will miss. But rest assured, we will see you all again very soon!” -- Kevin Rothney, Shane French, Matt Laporte, Christopher Kinder, and John Zahner.
Primal Fear have completed their latest effort, Devil’s Ground, which will be available through Nuclear Blast on February 23rd, 2004.
Suffocation anticipate the their first full-length release since 1995 next Spring, titled Souls To Deny, through Relapse Records.
Y&T will release Unearthed -- featuring previously unreleased Y&T recordings and demos from 1974 – 2003 – on December 8th. Next year will mark Y&T’s 30 anniversary.
Vocalists Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) and James La Brie (Dream Theater) will lend their throats to the new Ayreon album, titled The Human Equation, which is scheduled for release tentatively in May, 2004.
The ‘Twisted Method’ Tour, featuring Static-X, SoiL and Skrape, announce more dates to their itinerary:
11/26/03 Vancouver, BC Commodore
11/28/03 Spokane, WA Fat Tuesday's
11/29/03 Boise, ID Big Easy
12/01/03 Fargo, ND Playmakers
12/04/03 Flint, MI The Machine Shop
12/12/03 San Bernardino, CA Gotham
12/16/03 Ventura, CA Ventura Theater
12/17/03 Anaheim, CA House Of Blues
12/18/03 Hollywood, CA House of Blues

Stratovarius have inked a deal with Sanctuary Records. Word has it the contract was signed in elk’s blood. The band is currently writing music for their first release on the label, and expect to do plenty of touring in 2004.
For the previous Newswire, please click HERE.